Bradford College

Illustration Success for Manga Mad Manda

Talented graphic student, Amanda Smith from Bradford School of Arts & Media at Bradford College is set to showcase her work at a Seasonal Anime and Manga Convention later this month. The biennial convention, titled ‘Fuyucon’ attracts hundreds of Art and Design students, professionals and enthusiasts each year.

Amanda, who is currently enrolled on the second year of a National Diploma in Graphic Communication course, was commissioned by the convention organisers to redesign their mascot character to promote the event. Amanda re-developed the character called ‘Fuyu-chan’, which will be used on promotional materials, the event website, merchandise and event ID cards.
Amanda’s original design sketches will also be displayed throughout the convention.

Talking about Amanda’s talents, her course tutor Jayne Delaney said: “Amanda is a talented and popular member of her class. Her passion for anime and manga is often reflected in the work she produces and we are all very proud of this commission. Anime is very popular at the moment and it is always good for our students to get involved in real projects. We encourage our students to pursue their creative interests and we’re delighted that Amanda’s work will be showcased at such a fantastic event.”

Jayne continued: “Amanda is an extremely talented illustrator. Her passion for Manga animation is often reflected in her work as we encourage students to pursue outside interests and involve it in their course work and creative development. Anime has a huge cult following so we are extremely proud of this commission alongside the opportunity for Amanda’s work to be showcased at such a high profile external event.”

Discussing the Fuyucon commission, Amanda said: “It’s just amazing. It started out as a ‘hey, you do manga-style, fancy drawing our mascot?’ The convention organisers loved the result and before I knew it they wanted me designing all kinds of materials. I owe a lot to my Graphics tutors who have been a great inspiration. This is probably one of the most exciting things that’s ever happened to me, and it can only get better!”

Alongside the Fuyucon brief Amanda is also working on a College recycling project. Working with Ian Brown, Head of Porterage Service, Amanda is currently developing a cartoon superhero character that will appear on the Colleges Intranet site to encourage recycling and to provide an identity for the service.